312-800-9026

Received message from this number that was also dead air.

Dead air also

Stop calling, I'm not going to answere anyway.

Dead air. Stop calling

Dear Fellow Posters:
     WHY, Why, Why do some of you bother to answer a number that you don't know (because a lot of you will or have)?
    Why, when you do answer, get mad because it is a scam call?
    Why do you call back?
    You get pissed off at receiving these calls, but, you answer, hear dead air, or call back to give them a clue that you do have a working number that they can have fun spoofing with you!
    Then you get mad at the FCC, the DNC, the phone companies, the government and President Obama for these calls and accuse them of being 'ineffective' or 'a joke' for not doing anything about them.
    Understand that the DNC is working or you would be getting calls from any and every LEGITIMATE bank, credit card, charity, medical, loan, department store, and fundraiser you could think of--but, you don't because they are following the guidelines of the DNC.
    Just imagine, if most of the spam/unknown calls we all receive would be ignored (resisting the temptation to answer to 'get revenge', so to speak)--it could work wonders, don't you think?  Of course, that means that sites like this wouldn't be needed.
    Is that such a bad thing?
    So, come on, people!  Stop answering unfamiliar numbers, don't call back (it's usually a waste of time, most of the time, is it not?), and get on with the parts of your life that you can do something about.
    Don't allow spam/crank calls/and the like steal precious time from you--otherwise you are giving them permission to do so.
    DO. NOT. ANSWER.

P.S. I know that this will be ignored by most because there will be more posts complaining about these calls.
     (Sigh)  I tried. :-/

Are you serious? Never answer a call from a number you don't recognize????? Sorry not all of us have perfect lives where nothing ever goes wrong, where people don't have to borrow someone else's phone, where people don't have to change their number and wasnt able to tell you. I'm pretty [***] sure that dealing with 5 seconds of nonsense is worth making sure that someone important is not calling. I'm going to guess you are 55 and not the brightest

Are you [***]?  I answer a phone call only to find out its a telemarketer or dead air and I'm doing something wrong?
Your an idiot.

Okay Nigel,
That took a lot and you brought up a lot of good points. No one likes to get scolded so, you have to watch your tone a bit. That said, you are correct. What I do is look at the area code and decide whether or not to give it a shot. The majority of the time, I ignore the call, then Google the number. You are correct about not verifying our numbers for their data bases. I figure, if I don't find anything bad about the number, I can call it back and see if it's legit. Oddly enough there were times when I asked a company to contact me and forgot about it. The call back was justified. If it is a bogus number, I'll find that out and deal with it later.
You are right too about the amount of legitimate companies that honor the DNC request. I would like to see the FTC and FCC take this plight a step further. I think each new cell phone should have an app built in that sends a DNC Complaint to a special site where it is recorded and counted. When it hits a golden number, they could contact the phone company, challenge the phone number and it's alleged owner and make them do time. Forget wrist slapping. They need to be exposed, humiliated and punished. Phone companies keep records of what numbers are dialed on there phone bills. I don't understand why this data cannot be shared with the FTC when foul play is suspected. Anyway, you didn't make me mad and you did offer some good advice. I received a call on my cellphone and ignored it, so some of us get it. But I do like that people are willing to at least share their concerns here so I will be adding the number that called me into my own database as a prank caller. Thanks for sharing here.

Yes he's serious. The situations you pose are exactly the reason for answering machines and voicemail.  How is not answering an unfamiliar number any different than not being at home to answer a call you wish to receive when that call comes in?  Anyone whom you actually need to talk to is very likely to leave a message and, if they are calling from a new or borrowed number, give you the callback number.  If you are expecting a call and have no idea what number to expect the call from, that is a different situation, but even then, if it is an expected call, they would most likely leave you a message if you were not there or unable to answer before voicemail or the answering machine picked up.  There is absolutely no need to jump and answer every single call to your home or personal cell phone. You get to decide when to answer.  I have been following the rule of not answering unknown numbers for years and never once have I had any family, friend, or anyone else I wanted to speak with complain they could not ever get in touch with me.  My nuisance calls are down to less than one per day and most of those are disconnected after one ring by the robo call blocking service I am able to use.

This phone number just called me but I am a scary person and have all sorts of ways to find out who makes these types of calls ( Government Investigator ) This is a spoof app and it is used to harass people. So do not pick the call up. It can be someone you know and say something scary or it could be just a stupid person calling anonymous numbers because they have no life or eventually want to be arrested. The application is called the fake caller Id App and you can mimic a number you know that someone knows or it will just assign you a # which is what this # normally appears up as. Just ignore it. There is a law being passed to prosecute the people calling from this app as on my caller Id it said Chicago IL and I live in NY but through my department I just got the persons home address phone number and name and know exactly who called me they are actually living in BK NY.  I am now off to go file a restraining order against him. Another popular spoof caller Id faker # is 1-718 -078-3773

Sorry, but as I receive these calls at my business phone alongside calls from clients or customers who aren't yet in our database, I need to pick them up. It's good advice to not call back, as long as you don't have potential customers who don't want to waste time leaving voice messages, and blaming the FCC or the DNC (or the government, who *obviously* hires phishing companies and spammers as a joke to consumers ;) ) is absurd, but answering these calls is often necessary.

I understand your pain, but statistics will tell you there is more harm in answering a call you don't recognize than not answering it. Once they know you have a working number, you will be far more harassed than you are now. It's a lot like telling people you not at home and leaving the door unlocked. Most people who know you will leave a message or call back. It's wrong, but it's today's electronic society. Safety first.

Sorry, Nigel, I meant to direct that to another contributor. I will repost.

I understand your pain, but statistics will tell you there is more harm in answering a call you don't recognize than not answering it. Once they know you have a working number, you will be far more harassed than you are now. It's a lot like telling people you not at home and leaving the door unlocked. Most people who know you will leave a message or call back. It's wrong, but it's today's electronic society. Safety first.

Thank you for this post because it said everything I would have. I NEVER answer unknown #s, call back, or waste my time with them. I do add them to my BLOCKED # list & laugh. I figure most unknown #s are coming from someone in the "pen" & I don't know any one there. lol

Good for you, but remember a restraining order is JUST a piece of paper...ie all the dead battered women who filed them.

Received call on my cell; didn't pick up as I didn't recognize number.  Doesn't seem to matter that I'm on the "Do not call" registry.  Jerks.....

Called husband's cell.......he didn't answer....they left no message.

Received a call from that number on my Tracphon.  I only make calls from it for emergencies.  I have not give my number to any one so I have no idea how they got my number.  I assume they have some way of getting phone lists from Tracphon.  Used it once to call a neighbor and he ignored it because he did not recognize the number.

Got a call I answered no one said anything, I try to call it back and guess what no one picked up.